


Monster Hunter Monster Girls

by MDHWrites



Category: Monster Hunter (Video Games)
Genre: Anthropomorphic, Cute, F/F, Romance
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-03-27
Updated: 2020-04-02
Packaged: 2021-03-01 06:14:56
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 4
Words: 11,110
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/23346763
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/MDHWrites/pseuds/MDHWrites
Summary: This is a collection of a lot of silly stories featuring the different monsters of the Monster Hunter franchise as monster girls. I am always welcome to comments suggesting specific monsters and scenarios and I will be adding to this description and the character tags as I add new stories.Nightshade's Failed Poetry Slam: Nightshade Paolumu just wants to practice her poetry but she isn't exactly the biggest fish in the pond.Family Bonding: Xeno'Jiiva hasn't been seeing as many of her hunter friends as of late. Fortunately, she has a visitor that she never expected to see even exist come to tell her to chin up.Handling a New Beginning: The Handlers get a new charge to train up now that they're together.Sapphire Falling Star: A much darker chapter than the rest to explain why The Handler has a new pard.
Relationships: Serious Handler/The Handler
Kudos: 19





	1. Nightshade's Failed Poetry Slam

Paolumu stepped out of the brush, glancing around herself as she kept a book tight to her chest. The girl slipped a hand back, the purple skin meeting her jet black hair as her pink eyes darted around. She’d been working on some new material for the last little while so she needed to find some people to test it out on, but if she found something else… bigger around, she might lose her journal.

Her stride began to slowly get more confident as she continued walking though. After all, she wasn’t the weakest monster in the Guiding Lands. She could fly, put things to sleep, smack things with her tail, the long, spade ended tail slapping happily behind her in response to the thought, and all while looking good too. Unlike her mom, who wouldn’t stop wearing pink and white like some Jiiva worshipping idiot, she wore a long dress that was black with accents of green and purple weaved through it. It wasn’t the tightest around her too, meaning that whenever she sang her nightingale song it would billow around her and only would sometimes smack her in the face!

That wasn’t for today though. Today she kept her wings around her, even as she moved faster, using the matching pattern on them and the dress to help her blend in while hiding her face. She should be getting close to the best place for her little poetry slam after all. She just had to go a little…

She dove into some of the bushes nearby, her wings flapping frantically as she tried to have some grace and only made it worse. Fortunately, she didn’t hear a sudden roar or anything so she should be good. Should. She couldn’t think of a worse monster to be here right now as she looked out of her hiding spot.

The clearing was a good theater. Nice and open, an elevated stage in the middle, and a favorite space for Aptonoth to come through, the sleepy, peaceful girls with horns usually just munching while their tail smacked behind them. It also made a very good hunting ground though, and she’d hoped that wouldn’t be a problem here. Hoped it’d be better than in the Highlands.

But Odogaron was still here. It wasn’t even Ebony, who sometimes actually liked her poetry. Instead it was a tall, lanky girl with a snarl that made Night shiver, and a body that… well, beautiful girls were better. Yeah. She wasn’t jealous of her larger bust, the rough shorts, or the bikini top. It was all just trying too hard! The blue from the jeans didn’t even go with its light red, scaled skin or its wild, blood red mane. Too much of one color was a bad thing, but so was clashing!

Not that she said any of this outloud. She’d just finished mending her neck tattoos a week ago from the last time one of these girls got her in their razor sharp fangs. It was good they didn’t like getting their jaws snapped by her escape or else she didn’t really know what would happen. Maybe if she was bigger like a Deviljo she’d be okay, but she wasn’t. She wasn’t even a Legiana, just a Paolumu!

She then watched as Odogaron reached down, gripping a piece of meat that was next to it, a second set of claws extending from her knuckles and curling around to help keep it in her grasp. She then threw it up, her head snapping over in an instant to snatch it. Her fangs sank in deep as fresh blood streamed down the front of her body. Other girls might find it hot, but not Night. Nope. Not one bit. She wasn’t coming out just to comment on it like last time either!

It was a good sign. If the other girl already had a piece of meat that meant she’d already caught lunch. If she’d already caught lunch then she’d move on pretty soon. Then the stage would be all Night’s! Not hers all night, but all her ow- It didn’t matter. She didn’t even know why she was overthinking it like this.

She stayed quiet though. Anything could set off an Odogaron and her book wouldn’t survive even a brief encounter with the other monster. She held her breath, her neck expanding slightly, the tattoos on her neck stretching slightly as she made sure to stay silent. She just had to wait. Wait and she’d be safe.

It wasn’t until the hound had been gone for over five minutes that Night moved out of her bush and rushed over to the stage part of the clearing. She coughed, looking around her before bowing to her audience. “Hello, my fans. Your dark mother, Night, is here for you all to regale you with more of her odes to all that is dark and strange. I hope you’re all prepared for it!”

One of the Aptonoth turned her head, blinking slowly as it continued to chew on some grass until they slowly turned their head away. That was fine though. Fine. Totally fine. Catching their attention would tell her all she needed anyways! Yep!

Night opened her book, flipping through it. Diary page, diary page, chores list, picture of Raj...ing partying. Yep. Frivolity in the night. That’s all. Oh, there was her poem. Thank goodness. She let out a heavy sigh, having forgotten just how far back in the journal it was. Then again, she’d had to steal this from Astera itself and that had been a wonderful trip. It was nice and big though, and only had maybe fifty useless recipes for new world ingredients.

She had a job to do though. Art to practice! So, after clearing her throat, she finally began:

An Ode To Danger  
Claws that rend  
Muscles that don’t bend  
Eyes that invoke fear  
These are things I do not jeer

The strength in these very beings  
Short, tall, slow and sprinting  
The obvious isn’t always what you need  
Not when they all make you want to flee

From Nergigante’s spikes  
To Rajang’s powerful strikes  
These things that splatter  
I find only as flatter

The last word caught a couple Aptonoth, though not all of them quite understood the word.

Deviljo’s hot, angry breath  
Bazel’s explosive breadth  
All make me shiver  
All leave me to a quiver

The dangerous are not to be feared.  
They are to be n-

“So, no verse about me? I think I should be insulted.”

Night stopped dead in her poem, turning dark purple as the blood drained from her face. She could smell bits of ozone in her nose, something that was very different to her. The voice had a weird crackle to it that broke up the snark in its words. Night slowly, slowly turned to look behind her, shrinking back as her wings came to cover her again.

In front of her, in a trench coat that had a bug crawling out of one of the pockets, was a girl she’d never seen before. She was tall and had edges of yellow scales to break up her white fur. On her head was bright, yellow hair that crackled with energy before the same bolts ran their way up her two hard, multilayered horns.The eyes were a stormy gray that had an eyebrow raised over one as she looked down at Night since the girl was at least a foot taller than the smaller monster.

Night looked down, catching the monsters large claws tapping the ground. Along her leg, her hair was slightly matted by golden fishnets. Unlike most legs that had fishnets though, like when Night wore them, these were strong, powerful, and with thighs that looked powerful enough to crush a head with only one of them. Not that Night thought about that. No-

Abs. Oh wow. The other monster had opened her coat up, revealing the tank top underneath Her chest wasn’t anything too big, but enough to possibly cuddle, but that was nothing next to her stomach. Six solid abs, easily defined despite the fur that covered her body. She’d only seen abs like this on Rajang, and that had been through a stolen pair of binoculars so she didn’t get her spine broken. Now they were just in front of her.

The other monster extended a hand, the large, yellow claws pulling back a bit to make it safer as she said, “Yo. Name’s Zinogre. You new-”

“Ah!” Night leaped back, sucking in a deep breath and then puffing out her cheeks as her neck expanded behind her. The tattoos expanded to their full size, showing their true selves off. When she was breathing normal, they looked like soft stripes like what accented the rest of her dress. Like this though, they were large, vibrant, rainbow eyes that were each about three times larger than her own head.

Finally, she spread her wings, looked down, and let her breath out to actually launch herself upwards with her nightingale song, a purple smoke that Zinogre leapt out of. The larger monster looked up, watching as the girl flew off before hearing a thud from within the gas cloud. In a flash of movement, the lightning pup shot through the cloud, grabbing whatever the new girl had dropped.

It was a book. Zinogre thought only hunters did anything with these, but this definitely came from the new girl. Not that she minded. Not if it led to the silly thing she was reading when Zin got here. “It’s also a good excuse to see her again. I don’t get to meet anyone that cute very often. At least… not if they can’t lick their own eyeball.”

As she went to walk off though, she went through the cloud. Zin reached up, yawning as her eyes fluttered. “Oh, and she can help me sleep. Awe…”

Thud.


	2. Family Bonding

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Xeno'Jiiva hasn't been seeing as many of her hunter friends as of late. Fortunately, she has a visitor that she never expected to see even exist come to tell her to chin up.

Xeno’jiiva stepped hesitantly through her home. It had been a good long while since any of her old friends had come by. Those big hunters that got to see her at her proudest. At her strongest. They were so much fun to see and now… Now she was alone. Sure, some new ones would come from time to time, but she was always so sleepy for them and that just wasn’t as fun.

She brought a claw down and traced it across the ground. Where it touched it dripped energy into the ground, infecting the already crackling floor to bursting as the blue ground turned orange in large swaths. She smiled at it, enjoying the lights as she always had. So many hunters seemed to like them too when they frantically rolled through the large pools. She couldn’t blame them though as she laid on it herself. They were so wonderfully warm.

And right now she needed some warmth. Her long tail, almost as long as she was tall, came up to curl around her. She brought her claws up to bring it closer, biting it with her long, elongated maw, her sharp teeth lightly chewing on it as she nestled into it. Her wing folded around her, covering her body in almost its entirety. She liked that for when hunters did come wake her up, though she usually nestled in the crystals above her home. The amount of energy there was almost overwhelming but it was also where she’d been born so many years ago. It had a certain warmth to it that she never found anywhere.

She chewed a little more on her tail, curious if the new hunters told old hunters how much she’d changed over the years. Then again, why would they? They only saw her like she was now and wouldn’t know how she looked before. From a small child with a tail that was way too big for her to a large, sleek woman whose scales had flattened out to a smooth, shimmering glow that ran along her body, shifting with her spots of white to give her an almost ethereal look to her form. Then there was of course her chest which she was proud of since she’d gone from flat as a board to each being able to fit in her claws. She had become so beautiful but so many hunters wouldn’t know.

She shut her eyes, shaking a little as she bit harder into her tail, flares of energy flying off of it as she tried not to cry. It was okay. She’d be okay.

“I wouldn’t bite so hard. Not only does it fray your tail but it’ll mess up your teeth for a while. Then again, how would you know when I left so long ago?”

Xeno opened its eyes. The voice sounded vaguely familiar but instead her squeaky, higher pitched voice, this one had grown deeper. More confident. Less annoying. She peeked her head out from behind her wing before she was left stunned.

Above her was a woman that was almost two feet taller than her, her large wings beating the warm air down on Xeno as she slowly lowered herself. She had slightly ridged, red scales that likely protected her better from the elements than Xeno’s thin membrane, a grace that she’d never be able to match, and two blood red eyes. Her body was so much more mature than Xeno’s too, causing the smaller dragon’s cheeks to match the ground on which she laid. Her claws even flexed, knowing that they wouldn’t be able to handle her chest if it was as proportionally big as this monster’s was.

Something was off though. As the other monster landed Xeno noticed her long, elongated maw. Then the last thing that confused and fascinated Xeno the most happened.

The second the other dragon landed on the ground, the blue energy from it flowed up, filling the other one slowly as what looked like constellations covered the red scales. She flexed her wings, the other dragon’s body shaking as the energy wouldn’t stop. It almost seemed incapable of doing so.

Then, with a roar, it released the excess. It came out in the same brilliance of white and blue that Xeno released itself, but so much more than she could ever manage. The beam shot straight up, missing the crystals around them but the roar didn’t. It was so loud and powerful that the crystals began to shake, their energy flaring in response to the new presence. Then their energy began to bleed out as in thin streams they fed into the dragon, causing her to flex and ripple with energy.

That was when Xeno saw confirmation as to what it was. Underneath the red scales on its head, glowing one at a time, were three extra sets of eyes. They blazed with blue energy as the energy sparked and crackled around the other creature. It was when the first set of eyes that Xeno finally realized she should possibly move, darting behind one of the large crystal pillars nearby.

Not that it would survive the ensuing blast. It started with bright, blue, thin flames coating the entire arena in whipping flame that moved so fast it couldn’t form proper flames. It was as if the air itself was on fire rather than this being any sort of flame birthed from a creature. Then the ones on the ground became more intense as the creature began to roar. Xeno risked looking out at this point, her eyes widening at the sight.

The other dragon was breathing fire. Not just radiating it but blowing it in that thin, almost stardust filled fire that now spread across the ground. The sound of her roar began to shatter the smaller crystals on the walls and Xeno looked over to the large pillars that had smacked her in the head so many times. They were cracking now, just as she had expected, but instead of falling in large chunks they shattered into a billion shards that were shot into the wall by the force of the scream.

Then, finally, the other beast began to bring itself down, her body threatening to crash into, and through Xeno expected, the ground. She ducked behind the pillar, wrapping her wings around her as she shut her eyes against whatever was to come.

The moment of impact was surprisingly swift. The heat from it was almost too much for Xeno to take, her hands coming up to her ears as she tried to protect herself from the noise of it. They stayed there as the shattering began. The cascading breaks in her home as literally every crystal in the room broke. She barely looked up in time to watch the remains of her egg, thick and heavy crystal that was surprisingly solid after all of this, crashed directly towards her, her pillar having exploded in the impact and so not even that could slow the crash.

Then a white blur shot straight through it, the shell slamming into the wall from the sheer force of the blow.

Finally, energy dripping off of her, the red dragon looked down at Xeno from on high. Xeno looked up, jaw open before she began to whisper, “Who are-”

“How do you handle this place!? How did I?” The other creature shook itself, large swaths of energy flying around her as she continued to run off of her. “I was hoping to come and impress you with my control but instead I can’t even touch the ground!”

Xeno blinked a few times before smiling a little and asking, “S-S-So you’re another Xeno? You’re a sister? But you look so different! So calm. So… normal.” Xeno then laid down, just as defeated as she had been before. “I bet the hunters love you since you’re so much stronger than me.”

The other ‘Xeno’ lowered itself, careful not to touch the ground again though, before she let her tail, only about two thirds as long as she was tall, brush against Xeno’s head. “I’m Safi’jiiva. I grew up from this place, molted off the layers of smooth scales so that these could replace them and… I wanted to come home for the nostalgia.”

Xeno looked up, tilting her head as she fidgeted and began to lift herself up. She stayed on all fours as it comforted her to be that way, especially since it made the ground so warm. “Nostalgia? But you can go anywhere you want! You get to see new hunters! Or… do they avoid you too?”

Safi smirked as she continued to pet Xeno. “If it weren’t for you, I don’t know how many would go after me. After all, you’re still my base and I’m the only way for them to finish some of their weapon trees. Just like you.” She then stretched out, sighing sadly as she almost lowered herself too much. “But… I’m trapped just like you. I need the energy of convergence still and I now see why I was attracted to somewhere as weak as my new home. I should have remembered how hard it had been becoming to control this land’s energy.”

Xeno tapped the ground before leaping up, attempting to fly to join her older sister in the air. A huge grin was on her face as she squeaked out, “I can help! I’ve been getting only better and better at controlling the energy here. I’ve even been trying to figure out how to explode my entire home when I smash into the ground like you. Just, um, without all the fire.”

Safi giggled at that before going to one of the walls of the area, sinking her claws into it. “I won’t have to leave for a while so why don’t you show me your progress? It’ll be nice knowing that at least one Xeno gets to stay home.”

Xeno nodded furiously before her wings faltered and she almost crashed into the ground. Once she was safely on the floor she grabbed her right arm with her left claw, her wings coming up to hide herself. “I… Do the other hunters talk about me? Or have they forgotten me?”

Safi smiled softly. “No, they still talk about you. Mostly when they’re upset about me and want to attack how…” She opened one of her claws to look at it, “generic I look.” She then flicked her tongue against the top of her tongue before looking at Xeno. “They usually talk about the new Xeno being a child though.”

Xeno puffed out her cheeks, or at least the best she could with her facial structure before stomping the ground. It was a little too hard unfortunately and her arms began flailing as the claw sank into the earth before large jets of energy flew up, covering the girl temporarily. From inside the smoke cloud she still screamed, “I’m not a child anymore! Why don’t they ever talk about that!?”

Safi smirked at that before flinching a little. “I have to go. More hunters want to face me. But,” she said as she threw herself off of the wall. “When I down them all I’ll start taunting them to take out their frustration on you. I bet you’d both love to see how much you’ve grown. Deal?”

Xeno nodded, tears welling up in her eyes as she raised her claws into awkward fists. “Yes! Please! I-I-It will mean so much to me sister.”

Safi smiled, tears in her own eyes as she looked at her daughter. She wasn’t brave enough to tell Xeno that. Not after she left so quickly afterwards. Sister would have to cut it. “It’s the least I can do for you.” Before with another set of wingbeats she flew off towards the skies while Xeno cheered and made craters on the ground.


	3. Handling a New Beginning

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> With the coming of the Sixth Fleet there are new hunters to replace the old. With recent losses one of those new hunters is picked out to be taken care of by the newest couple in the New World. They're cute, they're opposites, and they're ready to get back into the field and get back into trouble with a new hunter to save them if one of them does her normal thing.

The Serious Handler paced in front of the tent at camp as she held a clipboard and bit her lip. “Okay, let’s run down the list. Did you grab the first aid meds and emergency rations? Oh, and you’re actually going to want to take the phials since you’re using a bow today.”

  
“Yes.””

“Good.” Seri glanced over to where a white palico was sitting in light, leather armor and continued to groom her Vigorwasp spray. She was thankful that that was the first gadget they gave to hunter’s palico companions instead of something like the Flashfly Cage where they might not know when to use it best. She walked over and stretched a hand out to the kitty but just got hissed at before the palico dashed away. She’d never had the same relationship that she’d had with the small animals as her partner had but she kept hoping one might let her finally pet it. “Star is ready.”

A young man stepped in front of her and then bent over to pet his cat. He was in the most basic, leather armor that most hunters started out with. She had tried to convince the higher ups to let him use the defender set but her partner had shot that down. It was more fun this way she said. If she expected either of them to be nervous about this it would be her.

She couldn’t dwell on it though. “You’ve practiced with your weapon, right? I know you didn’t get much time before we were shoved out here but I’m really hoping that they didn’t make you that unprepared.”   
  
The man stood up and scratched the back of his head, his sapphire hair shimmering in the light. That hair was a large part why she was working with a Sixth Fleet hunter now rather than her old partner. Not that he needed a handler as experienced as she was anymore… she hoped. His words didn’t make her nerves any better as he said, “I have but I didn’t get as much time as I’d have liked. Joy said though-”

“I don’t care what Joy said. Knowing her she’ll find a Rathalos and bring it with her in its…” Seri put a hand onto her chest as she felt her lungs get crushed with worry. It wasn’t the first time she’d done it when talking about her partner but it didn’t get any easier. Worse yet was that it was stuff like that that made her love her.

“Thank you for letting me use your name for her. I don’t know if I said that before but I really didn’t want to have to just call her ‘The Handler’ all the time.”

Seri sighed. “You hadn’t but I’m pretty sure you only found out that that’s what everyone calls her right before The Admiral chucked you onto a wingdrake. I’m… I’m happy that she’s taken to the name so well.” Her eyes glanced down as she thought about when she first called The Handler Joy and what had brought it all up. Her partner always told her to ignore it but…

She shook her head as she snapped herself out. “Now, what did you eat from Meowscular? And please don’t tell me you didn’t get a chance to eat.”

A higher pitched, far more chipper voice called from outside the thick canopy that surrounded the tent. Then again, much of the Ancient Forest could be described like that. Seri did let out a sigh of relief at the fact that she didn’t hear any crashing from behind the voice was always a comfort. The words she said didn’t help unfortunately. “I made sure Meowscular got him a full plate of meat. Nothing but the best for our up and coming Sapphire Star, right?”

It was now the young man’s turn to look away in worry. Joy ran in at the same time though and gave him a light push on the side. Then again, it might have just been her sprinting too hard and needing some way to stop her. “Oh, don’t look like such a sourpuss. We know you’ve got it in you and even if you don’t take her place we’ll take care of you just the same, right pard?”

Seri smiled as she looked at Joy. She was in her classic outfit from all the way back when they began. Seri had never really liked dressing up but she remembered when Joy squealed at the chance to be an alien. Not that she cared. That smile was enough to make her melt regardless of her outfit. “Of course. That’s why I want to make sure you’re safe. Just because everyone wants you to replace our Sapphire Star doesn’t mean we do. We just want to see you be the best hunter you can be Dust.”

Dust smiled at the two before he rolled back his shoulders and slipped the iron bow off of his back. It snapped open like it would for any trained hunter and he knocked an arrow into it in the same breath. Seri smiled as Joy leapt into the air before the latter pointed to the way out of camp. “Alright, now let’s get going already!”

Dust nodded before gesturing to Star who leapt onto his shoulders and almost made him faceplant into the ground. Once he was comfortable with the weight though he took off after Joy with Seri behind him. The two handlers weren’t supposed to go into the field too much but they could supply better support like this against some of the lower rank monsters.

The three leapt out onto the open field that was the beautiful start of the Ancient Forest. Both of the handlers smiled at the familiar sight since they’d been out of commission for a couple months now. Dust on the other hand looked at it all with wide eyes before he dropped his bow. The boy scrambled to pick it back up but it was enough to get Joy to chuckle and for Seri to rush over. “Sorry. Sorry. I know, a hunter never drops their weapon. I’ll be more careful.”

Joy rubbed her chin before saying, “I don’t know. I’ve seen a hunter load a heavy bowgun with literally every piece of ammo they had before chucking it into the rib cage of a Val Hazaak. It was beautiful!... At least until bits and pieces started falling on us.”

“And this is why I’m here so you don’t try to do something like that.”

Dust chuckled at the words as he popped a button on the bow and got to fold it back up. He didn’t need it to be out after all so he should keep himself more mobile. Not that they went super fast as Joy leapt from rock to rock, shouting and squealing as she let him know every last detail she could about the forest area. Seri simply smiled the entire time but tried her best not to let it get too wide. She wanted to at least pretend she was focusing more on the hunt than her partner.

It was only once they got to the brush that she began to focus more. Not too much mind you since Joy had gone on ahead to scout the area. In fact, when she wasn’t with a partner, she was considered the best tracker in the new world. She’d even surpassed her mentor. Seri just expected for her to point to the brush and let Dust know where he could find some Jagras or the like. They were mostly on an expedition after all.

It was then that Joy pulled out a small piece of cooked meat and Seri turned white. “Ahead of us is a normal gathering place for Jagras. They like the shaded areas of the wood more but their momma, the Great Jagras, is all too happy to come out onto that field to find an Aptonoth to hunt. It’s their favorite, but if you really want to bring out the taste,” she said as she tossed the piece up a little as all of them could hear some noise behind her, “than you have to roast it. The fragrance especially is divi-”

It was then that the very creature she was talking about appeared behind her. The Great Jagras stood above Joy like a behemoth. Almost nine feet tall, a lithe but powerful frame, and chest to match. The most striking part of the Great Jagras though, at least right now, was the head. Long, messy hair that came down like dreadlocks ran down its face and back normally but right now they were more to the side and back. For the most experienced hunters it meant nothing.

To a handler that smelled like better Aptonoth, it meant dinner. After all, the Great Jagras’s hair only moved like this because her head swelled as her jaw unhinged itself and opened far more than was possible for most things. It was a monster though and the members of the fleets knew all too well to assume nothing. This eating habit was also why it was so tall so that it had a stomach that could handle whatever it ate whole.

Seri moved a moment before Dust did. She didn’t hesitate like one might expect. Like she expected. Instead she charged Joy like a hunter might and sent both of them flying into the brush a moment before the Jagras descended upon them. It paused to look back at them, slowly turning its body before its head.

It was then, in the final moment that Joy could have been saved, that three arrows slammed into the Jagras’s mouth as all it got to eat was iron. It recoiled before slamming down onto the ground and roaring at the young hunter. Dust had dashed back with his feet making a wide arc as he lowered himself to almost being prone on the ground. He was just outside the range where the roar would have made him stumble from the pain in his ears so instead pulled back farther and farther on the bow.

The Great Jagras lowered its mouth, glared at Dust, and then found a very large, glowing, sparking arrow meet its glare.

The Dragon Piercing Shot sent the Jagras flying back into the forest before Dust ran right after it with Star just barely behind him. Joy and Seri were still panting together in the brush. Seri was laying on top of the impulsive girl and held her tight as she whispered, “What… Were you…”

“He did great, didn’t he? Just as I hoped.”

Seri stopped even breathing at that. Her white face was suddenly filled with color before she pushed herself off of Joy and swiped at her front as she screamed, “You did that to test him? Are you insane? He just started hunting! I know you want him to replace your old partner but…”

They both grew silent at the last few words before Seri came over and helped Joy up so the two could clutch to each other. “I just… I don’t want to possibly lose you. I never did and I don’t know if you have someone who’ll be able to keep you safe out there. So please… please just try to be careful.”

Joy didn’t respond as she buried her face into her partner’s shoulder. The two had told the higher ups that they were ready but they both had been afraid of this happening. That Joy wouldn’t be mentally prepared to do her job right.

They both also knew that Joy never would unless she started finally doing something again.


	4. Sapphire Falling Star

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> This is much darker than the rest of the story! This is meant to be a celebration of the player character and an explanation for The Handler's current state but all of it can be inferred from other chapters. I am saying this upfront since it contrasts so much of the rest of the story.
> 
> It was a regular hunt. A tough one, but normal. Three elder dragons that need to move out of the Elder's Recess. The Sapphire Star had taken care of much worse in the past and she'd take care of this too. It's too bad that The Handler's report was incorrect for what the hunter was about to face.

She looked out from the high ridge of the Elder Recess that was just beneath Daora’s nest. The Handler, or Cute Handler as Seri called her when she thought no one was listening, had told her that Teostra, Velkhana, and Kiren had been sighted in the area. An elemental triple threat. Fortunately, Grammeowster Chef had had plenty of vegetables to help her out. She wouldn’t take it easy though. Being reckless hadn’t gotten her this far. Well, not once she started fighting as she remembered diving in to fight Ishvalda.

Sapphire’s eyes narrowed as she saw something beginning to move. She used to go by A-Lister or Hunter but it had been a long time since she had used those names. If she still did then she wouldn’t be out here on a casual hunt. She narrowed her eyes as the creature came out from the crystal cavern beside this large, open plane. The lightning told her what it was before she could make out any other details.

Kiren strode into the clearing like a supermodel, like she normally did. Most would call her prancing about to be like a dance but Sapphire had always considered it a Ballroom Blitz then. The lightning covered anything that the thick, fluffy fur didn’t and where skin showed it was a beautiful, light blue.

The fact that it was already cloaked in its lightning seemed a little off though. Admittedly, if all three of these really were out here then there had to be a large amount of not just natural energy but elemental energy specifically. It could be supercharging them.

It made Sapphire smile. She hadn’t had a good hunt in a long time.

She leapt off of the high cliff and enjoyed the whistling wind as it passed her ears before she slammed into the ground. Her roll kept some of her momentum before she began walking towards Kiren. She brought out her light bowgun and began to place Wyvern Blast in a line across the small hill that led up to the large cliff that she’d been on. With how much Kiren liked to move she expected it would be all too easy to catch her in the trap. It also would help her respond quickly to anything that showed up behind her.

She then loaded up her gun with sticky ammo and took careful aim. The Kiren actually looked kind of cute as she tried to balance on a small ridge in the plain that so many hunters would use to help them mount monsters. It was moments like this that Sapphire actually felt bad for attacking a monster. They needed to go before they caused a hurricane that would make Daora jealous though so she couldn’t go.

Her opening salvo came like that of a Heavy Bowgun’s Wyvern Heart as eighteen shots went out almost at once and slammed into Kiren. The elegant creature stumbled a little, her hooves attempting to find purchase as the barrage continued to slam into her before she looked at where it had come from.

Then, entirely covered in sticky bombs, she smiled. A second later, she exploded. The shockwave cracked many of the crystals nearby as Sapphire raised a hand over her face to protect her. The fire plume extended high into the air before black, acrid smoke replaced it. Sapphire knew it wouldn’t be enough to take out Kiren, especially while she had her defenses raised, but that didn’t explain the smile.

It didn’t matter though as she loaded spread rounds in. She could use poison right now but she wanted to save that for Teostra. The heavy damage from it would make sure that she was getting something in while the toaster threw a fit. Of course, that would also be with her Heavy Bowgun so she could just block it but the point was the same.

Kiren then came out of the smoke. She was light on her feet as she jumped from spot to spot. She seemed to know that Sapphire was trying to get a good shot and so avoided sticking in one place. She never came too close either which was even more of a problem for the type of ammo that she’d chosen.

With each step also came a bolt of lightning that was seemingly called down from the heavens themselves. Not that they were as powerful as that but it was why she never wanted to be in that path so she didn’t get caught up in the small lightning traps. That was where her the Wyvern Blast came into play though as she switched to regular ammo and took aim as Kiren leapt again. After all, normally, she’d have to make sure she hit the rather mobile target dead on.

With Wyvern Blast, she just had to aim at that. She let off a test shot just as Kiren stepped next to it as the three, heavy rounds went into the air next to her. The monster looked down just in time to see the sparking gas next to her. Kiren put her hands in front of her face but it was far too late as the gas ignited. Just like with the sticky ammo, the bomb set off was much larger than what most hunters would manage and Kiren was sent flying this time before she crashed onto the ground. She tried putting her arms and legs underneath her but she needed to catch her breath first.

Sapphire bit her cheek as she swapped to piercing ammo. She may have been the best hunter in the new world but that didn’t mean this should be so easy. Kiren was better than this. She glanced to above her and her eyes widened before she rolled to the side. When she looked back she spotted a thin spire of ice that was wedged at least half a foot into the ground.

She looked up and scowled slightly. Velkhana. Staying still against either monster was dangerous enough but together it meant it was a death trap. Any ranged weapon wouldn’t work, not while they were both around, and so put the bowgun on the ground. She then reached back and gripped the next weapon she’d use. She’d figured out every piece of her arsenal after all and so now used all the times she’d had to carry eggs for the chef to her advantage and pretty much carried her equipment box on her back.

Sapphire then looked down and saw the ground turning blue. She stepped back as she pulled out both a sword and a shield. Mobility and defense. Velkhana landed just as she got out of the way. Her ice cloaked her like a dress except for where it rose in hard armor like the helm around her face. Her tail flicked behind her before it became stiff. In another second it would stab straight into Sapphire’s chest.

Velkhana didn’t get a chance as Sapphire suddenly leapt at her. Her sword slammed into Velkhana’s stomach as the point drew a light amount of blood and knocked the dragon off her feet. Her sword didn’t stop as a flurry of blows lifted Velkhana up and made sure the dragon couldn’t try to step away. The shield was next as it cracked into Velkhana’s chin and the beast’s eyes went vacant for a moment from the sheer force of it.

Sapphire paused for a moment as she turned the blade and braced her back foot to launch her forward. Like this she could keep Velk down for at least a few minutes while she worked on Kiren. Her eyes then widened as she remembered about the horse. She glanced down at the bright blue line below her. It was too late to roll though so she simply braced herself.

The lightning struck her directly in the spine and launched her forward. Velkhana was spared the final blow of Sapphire’s perfect rush but she was still crushed as she joined the hunter in being blasted by the other elder dragon along at the same time that her prey crashed into her. It had about the same effect as finishing the perfect rush would have but this way the two had at least managed to hit Sapphire. Not every monster could claim that nowadays.

Sapphire got up quickly and shook her head clear of the blow. It wasn’t too much after all and she wasn’t about to back off that easily. She could still finish this fast and then head into the molten areas below to find Teostra. She had this.

That was when the real trouble began. At the same time that she was pausing to let Kiren make the first move she felt a change in the air pressure. She tried to leap away but it was too late as a large wind blast slammed into the ground and became a tornado that launched her into the air. She winced and looked down to see Kiren charging up for a lightning strike that would likely blast her straight into the ground.

She then looked towards the tornado and watched as Daora came out from it. She had large, imposing wings and metallic armor that mimicked that of armor. It was simply her skin though and it made her not only hard to hit but sometimes hard to keep track of amongst the stones. It was all made infuriating by these tornadoes she would create.

Sapphire had long ago stopped caring about those pesky things though as she shot her clutch claw at Daora. The dragon’s eyes widened as the tool gripped onto her face. The next thing she saw was the hunter flying towards her with a very heavy shield approaching much faster than anyone would want it to.

Sapphire practically shot through the dragon as her shield cracked against its head and Daora dropped like a rock to where the other three were. Sapphire slowly stood up and shook her head to clear it again. It wasn’t from being hit this time. No, it was from Kushala Daora being there. The Handler could be a handful sometimes but she’d  _ never _ let her down before. She was the best in the new world for a reason. For her to have missed a monster in the area, let alone an Elder Dragon, wasn’t normal.

Fortunately, the camp wasn’t far now that she was back on the tall cliff. If she made it over there she could clear her head, reassess the situation, and maybe even call in backup. After all, three elder dragons one after another was hard. Four at the same time? She even paused at that.

She then watched as another creature crested the cliff that led back to camp. This made five as Nergigante, wreathed in an armor of black spikes, looked down on her with a large, wicked smile. It confirmed Sapphire’s fears. After all, even if Nergigante was here to get dinner, and there was plenty of it around for the beast, it wouldn’t have its black spikes yet. They took time to grow in and part of why the dragon would remove them as violently as she did was because they actually dug into her in the process of growing so large. That pain also made them more aggressive and impulsive which she could use to her advantage as she dropped the sword and shield.

The black dragon scowled before unfolding her wings and letting out an almost earth shattering roar. It was mostly directed to the heavens as a declaration of intent which often saved hunters from being paralyzed for too long by it but such roars had long ago stopped bother Sapphire. She instead pulled out a very large shield and presented it in front of herself as smoke came off of it.

Nergigante lifted her far off of the ground before charging straight at Sapphire in a spiraling dive. The hunter lifted her shield, angling it just right to let Nergigante carry some of its momentum as she pushed it away from her ground. She got it to budge slightly, but that wasn’t the kicker. The kicker was the lance she’d hidden behind her back that she now drove straight into Nergigante’s chest and used it to throw Nergigante into the same place where the rest were still.

Sapphire panted as she looked back towards the camp. She needed to get moving while there was still a chance and she was burning through options fast. Her eyes glanced at the lance and she paled as she realized that her drastic little move had shattered the end of it. It didn’t matter. She could recover and repair it later. It had done a more than admiral job for having stopped her from getting sent straight to the pit where she would definitely be carted.

At least, if the palicos would even be able to get her out of there.

She couldn’t dwell on such things though as she began to run towards the camp. She was too close to combat to get a wingdrake to grab her and she hadn’t expected to need a farcaster to get her home fast. That wouldn’t be a problem though. Not when she was less than a minute from…

There was green gas rising from the area that was on the same level as her camp. A pair of sunken in, red eyes looked up from where the hole to the camp was and a large smile spread across this dragon’s face. The multiple rows of teeth on Val were always unnerving but it was even worse when it came from a creature who could have…

Sapphire stopped herself from just charging at it. It wouldn’t have waited here if it didn’t have a plan for her to charge at it. The Handler was fine. Creatures couldn’t crawl through the same holes that normally protected those inside the camps. They had just stopped her from getting in. Nothing else.

Keeping a clear head let her catch the sound of crashing waves coming from above her and she didn’t hesitate to start moving from the sound. Only seconds later a large wave crashed onto the ground where she’d been as a creature draped in sheer drapes that were like the skin of an octopus which matched the tentacles that fell from Namielle’s head. She then spread herself and dove towards Sapphire as she gave chase after her prey.

Sapphire didn’t give her a chance though as she brought out a long, thin spear and a small, red bug came out with her. She whispered something to the small bug before throwing it towards the top of the cliffs where Kushala usually nested. It was a high climb but far simpler when you could almost fly.

She leapt into the air before pointing the spear behind her and getting it to let out a blast of air. Going straight up wasn’t an option but if she kept going diagonally she could climb pretty high. Besides, she only needed to get close enough to grab one of the Wedge Beetles there anyways and then Namielle and her would probably get some alone time. At least, if none of the other ones who could fly spotted her during this.

It was only once she let her slinger extend to the beetle that she got a chance to properly look down and saw… no one. Well, she could see as plenty of them began to move. They had joined together on the steep slope that was beside the nest and about three hundred feet lower. Namielle coated it in water and checked to make sure her electricity flowed freely down the second half of the slope where it got a little flatter. Kiren and Velka were on the side and nursing their injuries but they were obviously still able to fight. Nergigante sneered at her as they made eye contact before she snapped her maw at Val when she got too close. The only one unaccounted for was Daora who then made her presence known as a sudden, strong air current through her higher and swung around to where she’d planned on falling to anyways.

And to the other one she had forgotten about. Teostra. The red lioness looked at Sapphire with a snarl as her hands slowly formed into fists. Her muscles rippled and fire slipped from between her teeth. The thing that likely stopped her was the taller, blue Lunestra who slipped her arms around her husband. She was far more feminine in build but the air around her radiated with enough heat to match open lava.

Sapphire crashed into the ground and rolled on her side while grabbing her next weapon. Or, mixture of weapons. After all, she knew what was coming and would need both reach and power if she wanted to not be blown straight off the nest and into the literal death trap that was awaiting her below. A gunlance’s spear with a Wyrmstake Blast already loaded in one hand and a bow in the other. 

She got up and slid her right foot back as she brought the lance up and slotted it into place like a regular arrow. Both weapons glowed with energy as they awaited her to release but she had to wait. After all, both Lunestra and Teostra were only just getting into the air. Their tails slipped into each other, coiling together as they held each other close. It would be really sweet if the energy of a nuke and an atom bomb weren’t building around the two.

She watched as the sparks of the two’s energy began to sink into them and only then released the Dragonrazer. It primed the Wyrmstake Blast but instead of one simple blast it followed the bow’s piercing ability and effectively made the two into a makeshift Wyvern Snipe. The effect was immediate as they both screamed in energy, their energy slamming back into them and imploding as both fell to the ground and crushed the middle platform that Daora usually slept on.

Sapphire didn’t stop there though as she pulled out two giant slabs of metal out of her bag next. It was unwieldy to have both weapons out but it was about time she was able to go on the offensive again. She pointed backwards and latched onto one of the other Wedge Beetles in the area. She lifted herself high and swung in a wide arc that let her see the dumb founded faces of the Elder Dragons below. They must have expected the two fire elder dragon’s bond to be enough to remove her from the nest.

Instead, with all the momentum she could muster, she let go of the beetle. She let go of one of the blades and let the heavier of the two, a sword that was almost twice the size of her, swing down with her. Her aim was perfect as the two attempted to get untangled from each other. Even if she couldn’t take the two out with her plan she’d make them less dangerous.

The two lioness howled in agony as they both felt the great sword slice into their tails. In one cut Sapphire almost managed to cut both of them off but Teostra pulled Lunestra away just in time for the last part of the cut to go through and pop her tail off too. That wasn’t a problem for her though. As both tried to move away from her she dropped the Longsword and put both hands on the large, long axe. It clicked as its parts began to change and she swept up as the axe changed into a sword. She swung that up, gouging the ground as she did so and this time ripping off the blue lioness’s tail.

She then swung it around, putting her full weight into the heavy strike as the blade changed back into the axe. She didn’t hold onto it though as she threw the weapon at them and the two became pinned against the wall by it. Sapphire was panting from the exertion at this point but she had one more heavy weapon to use to finish these two off.

Now that they were still she pulled out another large shield and a sword that was somewhere between the knife of the sword and shield and the behemoth of the longsword. She stepped back, crossed the sword across her chest, and slammed it into a groove in the shield. The outside of the shield popped out as electric energy went up the sword and shield.

Or, as it was now, a very, very, large axe. She brought it across her body, stamped her foot in front of her, and then brought the axe straight down on the two of them with a giant roar of lightning.

Sapphired stepped back, letting go of the axe as she felt the adrenaline slowly settle in her. Two down. Six to go. She needed a chance to breathe though. Needed to get back to The Handler so she could rest. The scout flies were still red though. If they didn’t attack her now they would likely have someone waiting back at the way to camp. To make sure she couldn’t clear those bodies and just leave the recess. No one could face this many Elder Dragons after all and she had only survived so long by being clever and keeping them away from her and each other.

Some of the scoutflies flew out of their lamp and circled to behind her. She looked but she had already bet on which one it had been. The one she’d pissed off the most. The one who was still looking for a target for those black spines.

Nergigante’s eyes were pure hate as Sapphire pulled out her dual blades. She then switched her grip forward and felt their energy help reinvigorate her. She would need the extra speed they could afford her but she could feel her own anger and excitement rise. For the demon inside of her to boil at the thought of taking out every last one of the dragons.

Nergigante didn’t bother with a roar as she lifted herself up and began to spiral at Sapphire again. She braced her legs as her instincts said to stay there and fight. Her head was more powerful than the demon though as she dashed to the side. They were faster and farther than her rolls as she crossed almost the entire nest while Nergigante flew right over her and crashed into the other side of it.

She then threw the blades to the side and put her hands on the wall she was at. She then gripped the vines there and forced herself to scale it. It would leave her at the top of the nest and prone to being knocked off towards the slope. She had a plan though. She didn’t like the plan, but she had one.

She turned to where Nergigante was and reached into her bag for one of the four weapons she had left in there. That was maybe the worst part of all of this. She’d had to use so many of her tools that she would be without almost all of them if she fell. With her other hand she pulled a golden, shimmering mantle out of her regular bag and slipped it over her. The Temporal Mantle would protect her for a little bit but they’d burn through it far too fast for her to do anything with it against all of them.

She could use it against Nergi though. The dragon dove at Sapphire but it wasn’t nearly as fast or as deadly now that she was without her spikes. The mantle let Sapphire dodge the claws without having to burn anymore of her very, very limited stamina. She used the momentum of the dodge to pull out the large hammer from her bag and brought it around like she had with all of the big weapons.

Every ounce of her strength cracked straight into Nergigante’s horns. One of the shattered on impact and the dragon was knocked away and crashed along the ground. At least, until it reached the same ledge that the dragons wanted her crashing off of. If they wanted it so badly then they would have it as Sapphire ran towards the ledge and leapt off of it.

In the air she pulled out the longsword. Its steel shone in the sun and caught the attention of every elder dragon in the valley. All of them that had come to take her out. She then turned the blade down and pointed it straight towards her target. She began to fall faster and faster as a red aura glowed around both the blade and her. None of them could stop her free fall. Stop the hunter from hunting.

The impact of Nergigante and Sapphire hitting the ground sent tremors at least as strong as Nergigante’s dive often caused. The other dragons stumbled back from the impact as they simply stared and waited for the dust to clear. They could see a silhouette swinging something inside of it but that didn’t surprise them. Nergigante had been the main one to push the plan. To bring them all together to finally get rid of the Sapphire Star. She hadn’t been smart enough to figure out the exact details but the rest of them had dealt with that. Dealt with how to cut her off from her handler. How to trick the handler into thinking there were only three despite it being next to impossible to actually manage to trick that one in particular.

When the dust cleared they saw Nergigante wasn’t continuing to fight Sapphire. No, Nerigante laid on the ground, the long sword impaled into her skull. Elder Dragons always recovered eventually from even fatal wounds but the sight of it, of a wound that none of them would survive, was enough to keep them stunned as Sapphire brought the large, hammer like weapon to in front of her.

She then put her lips to it and blew. The sound was a shrill screech that echoed throughout the entire recess. It was louder than any monster screech could be and the elder dragons brought their hands over their ears as they all tried to blot out the noise. There was no use though as she continued to blow. Val, due to her lack of proper ears, managed to open an eye despite the noise and saw the red aura that was consuming her.

Every note she had prepared was for attack. To make sure her last weapon could finish this. Sapphire let go of the horn and stepped back before she pulled out the heavy bowgun. She laid it on the ground and placed a single piece of wyvern ammo at the front and then just upended her pouch. She’d only tried this sort of thing once and it had been with much, much less ammo at the end of the hunt she’d been on. If she hadn’t then The Tracker would have been in the effluvium too long so it had been worth losing her heavy bowgun then and the weapons shield mostly kept her safe.

Most of the ammo fit when she closed it but the weapon hated it. It was never meant to have all of this crammed into it and the excess fell around her. It was part of what made her expect this to end much, much worse than last time she’d done it.

She had no choice though as the end of the cannon began to let out a bright flame. Val’s eyes widened before she yelled, “Ru-”

The sound deafened  _ everything _ . The cliffs above them all cracked from the shockwave and large rocks at the top came crashing to the ground. The fire extended so far as to stretch from one end of the recess to the other. The smoke would take hours to clear as it filled anything that survived lungs with ash. The hill that had been so steep in incline before now had a steep drop off midway where a hole that was almost fifty feet deep existed near the top and much of the rest of the hill had melted to be more uniform in height.

And in it all, barely managing to crawl out of the hole, was Sapphire. Her armor was gone. Her equipment was gone. There was nothing left on her except the skin that felt like it wanted to melt off of her. It was nothing a few days binge eating max potions couldn’t fix but in the moment she could barely stay conscious from the pain.

She got onto her knees before looking down at herself. Without a map, she couldn’t point to a camp to be taken too. That would only work for a tailrider though as she didn’t have the strength nor slinger it would take to get taken away. Fortunately, she was only maybe a mile away from another camp and it would be almost all just walking. She could make it over there and The Handler would have likely gone over there.

“Pard! Pard!”

Sapphire blinked a few times as she wondered if she was just imagining her partner’s voice. Then she remembered that she only knew one person who would see eight elder dragons and an explosion like that and come  _ towards _ the danger. She turned her head as she barely managed a smile.

She needed to be strong. Her partner would only become more panicked if she stayed on the ground like this. So, despite the agony and exhaustion, Sapphire managed to stand up, She then reached up with a hand, brought it close to her forehead, and went to extend it to The Handler like any good hunter would greet another.

She never got the hand out towards The Handler though. Not when Nergigante had been being told her plan by her big sister. By the Elder Dragons’ ringer.

Ruiner Nergigante flew up the hill before goring Sapphire on her horns. Ruiner wasn’t about to risk her getting back up from that, not after she beat eight other elder dragons alone, and flew off with her. The Handler watched slowly as Ruiner flew higher and higher before something forced it to change direction and it flew straight into the large, sharp crystals that made up the inaccessible parts of the recess.

It was as they fell and crashed down that The Handler hit her knees.

======+++++======

“Handler!”

The Handler barely turned her head, her eyes vacant as two people ran towards her. One was in green while the other was her partner. Or… she thought. She wasn’t sure. She felt so weak. So tired. How much time had passed?

She got an answer to that pretty quickly as Serious came down beside her and wrapped her arms around The Handler. She didn’t squeeze tight though as she said, “You’ve been gone for over two days without a word! What happened?”

The Handler slowly turned her head to the crater before turning it to the ruined mountains of crystal. Serious’s handler fainted on the spot as he dropped to the ground while Serious covered her mouth. She then slowly looked at the amount of elder dragon bodies that were slowly, very slowly, healing on the hill. Many of them were missing more than half of their bodies but she knew better than to worry about them. Elder dragons always got back up. Almost every monster always got back up but no matter how much you hurt these anomalies, they got back up.

Not that it wasn’t still impressive, but Serious also didn’t care at the moment. She instead turned towards The Handler and whispered, “Are you… Are you okay?”

The Handler slowly turned to Serious before choking out, “Who… call… pard?”

Serious blinked a few times before slipping her fingers into The Handler’s. “You… you can call me that if you’d like.” Her face turned slightly red before she whispered, “Or Seri. That’s what I consider, my, um, not title name… I thought it might help if you’re not ready yet.”

The Handler smiled a little. “I… like… that.”

Seri slowly laid The Handler onto her back as she brought out food, water, and mega potions. “Um… would you like a name? Like… Cute? Or, um… something else?”

The Handler paused before simply shutting her eyes. It would be about three days before she was properly conscious, another three before she was fully cognizant, and another one to think of what both Seri and Sapphire would often say about her.

‘You might be a mess, but you’re also a joy.”

Seri loved it and getting called it as her name managed the first smile she’d had since the day where she had failed so utterly that she didn’t just get her partner a failure.

She’d gotten her killed. All because of how useless she was.


End file.
